El Al, Israel's flagship airline, on Sunday canceled all regularly scheduled flights through April 18 as the Transportation Ministry extended restrictions on departures from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv amid the conflict with Iran. The airline will continue operating a limited number of emergency flights.
"Following the decision of the state authorities, an emergency flight schedule is currently in effect," the airline said in a statement. "This schedule includes flights to a limited number of gateways and a restriction on the number of passengers on each flight."
El Al said that, because of the restrictions, scheduled flights planned before the start of the current military operation have been canceled through April 18. Relevant return flights have also been canceled.
The airline said it is "operating a limited number of flights to several central gateways," including destinations such as New York (John F. Kennedy International Airport), Newark, Los Angeles, Miami, Bangkok, London, Paris, Rome, and Athens.
"As of now, inbound flights to Israel from these gateways are operating without passenger limitations," the airline said.
El Al also said that, because of the Transportation Ministry's 100-passenger limit on all flights departing from Israel, passengers are being prioritized based on their original ticket issue date.
"Priority is given to exceptional humanitarian medical cases," the company said. "Customers whose flights were canceled due to the security situation are entitled to a refund or a credit voucher."
The Transportation Ministry's 100-passenger limit on all flights departing from Israel is an increase from the 80-passenger limit per flight, The Jerusalem Post reported Sunday. The limit was set amid the conflict with Iran and potential security risks of operating full flights. Additionally, the ministry will allow two flights to depart per hour, up from one.
The ministry had lifted restrictions imposed during the Passover holiday season, which lowered the number of passengers to 50. The new policy is expected to signal a shift toward more relaxed flight restrictions, according to the Post.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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